[ARRANGEMENT AND PERFORMANCE:] [Instruments: dark electric piano, gritty blues guitar, harmonica accents, warm bass, brushed kit] [Piano: minor riff intro, low register comps, tremolo touches, leave space for vocal] [Guitar tone: small amp breakup, light spring reverb, slide answers in gaps, one main solo only] [Harmonica: short 4 bar interlude after Verse 2, then out] [Drums: brushes in verses, light stick lift in choruses, no fills under chorus line 1, one fill into Final Chorus only] [Dynamics: Verse 1 sparse, Chorus 1 medium, Verse 2 medium, Bridge drop, Solo build, Final Chorus biggest, Outro fade] [MIX TARGETS:] [Master loudness: -12 to -10 LUFS integrated] [True Peak: -1.0 dBTP] [Vocal to band balance: Verse +2 dB, Chorus +3 dB, Bridge +3.5 dB] [EQ intent: vocal high pass 80 Hz, control 200 to 400 Hz mud on piano and guitar, gentle 3 to 5 kHz presence on vocal, soft 8 to 10 kHz air] [Space: short room on snare and piano, spring taste on guitar, rain ambience low and wide] [Edits: tight on band, natural on vocal breaths] [LYRICS LOCKED] [Intro: vocal: none, grit:0, doubles: off, adlibs: none, placement: buried 18, V vs B -4.0, edits: tight, breaths: none] [Blues piano intro, 4 bars, rain ambience low, sparse guitar swells] [Verse 1: vocal: clean lead with light grit, grit:20, doubles: off, adlibs: none, placement: forward 3, V vs B +2.0, edits: natural, breaths: audible] I woke to gutters snapping on the tin roof I woke to gutters snapping on the tin roof Streetlights smear on the wet curb, your coat is gone, and my key feels useless [Chorus: vocal: gritty lead, grit:45, doubles: light mono double on last words only, adlibs: sparse low hum, placement: forward 2, V vs B +3.0, edits: tight, breaths: controlled] Heartbreak blues got a hold of me tight Squeezing my breath out of my days and my nights Heartbreak blues, will you set me free Cut me loose, let me breathe [Verse 2: vocal: clean lead with more grit, grit:30, doubles: off, adlibs: none, placement: forward 3, V vs B +2.0, edits: natural, breaths: audible] Your coffee cup sits cold by the sink all day Your coffee cup sits cold by the sink all day Ash in the tray, burn marks on the wood, and silence that will not give way [Harmonica Interlude: vocal: none, grit:0, doubles: off, adlibs: none, placement: buried 18, V vs B -4.0, edits: tight, breaths: none] [Harmonica, 4 bars, call and response with piano, keep it short] [Chorus 2: vocal: gritty lead, grit:50, doubles: light mono double on last words only, adlibs: sparse, placement: forward 2, V vs B +3.0, edits: tight, breaths: controlled] Heartbreak blues got a hold of me tight Squeezing my breath out of my days and my nights Heartbreak blues, will you set me free Cut me loose, let me breathe [Bridge: vocal: intimate near spoken then lift, grit:35, doubles: off, adlibs: none, placement: forward 1, V vs B +3.5, edits: natural, breaths: audible] They call it time, but it drags like chain Each tick lands heavy, again and again I keep walking rooms that do not change Trying to find one clean minute of peace [Guitar Solo: vocal: none, grit:0, doubles: off, adlibs: none, placement: buried 18, V vs B -4.0, edits: tight, breaths: none] [12 bar main solo, start sparse, build to bar 9, choke ending, land on E7#9] [Final Chorus: vocal: gritty lead with slapback echo, grit:55, doubles: light mono double, adlibs: low answers between lines, placement: forward 2, V vs B +3.0, edits: tight, breaths: controlled] Heartbreak blues got a hold of me tight Squeezing my breath out of my days and my nights Heartbreak blues, will you set me free Cut me loose, let me breathe [Outro: vocal: low tired lead, grit:25, doubles: off, adlibs: none, placement: forward 4, V vs B +2.0, edits: natural, breaths: audible] Rain keeps on tapping, piano keeps on talking Yeah, the blues keep on talking Heartbreak keeps hanging on Fade out with rain
